Irv Gotti Presents: The Inc.

• Artist: Irv Gotti/Various Artists
• Rating:
• Release Date: July 02, 2002
• Type: Contains explicit content, Enhanced CD-ROM
• Genre: Rap

Review

Two years after the lukewarm reception given to his Murderers various-artists album, Irv Gotti unleashed his second, Irv Gotti Presents: The Inc. During the two-year intermission, Gotti's label, Murder Inc, grew enormously. In particular, Ja Rule and Ashanti scored huge hits, and Gotti himself moved further toward Dr. Dre-size proportions as a producer. Given all the success for Gotti and his label, it's understandable that he'd return with a hard-hitting follow-up to his Murderers collection. Gotti first diversified his roster, adding Charli Baltimore in hopes of duplicating the success of Ashanti. Similarly, he integrated more R&B into his songs, often juxtaposing his male gangstas with his hook-singing females just as he'd done on so many hits for Ja. Besides the vocals, he changed his production style a bit -- actually, to be more accurate, that of his co-producers -- moving closer toward the sound Dre and the Neptunes popularized in the early 2000s: real instruments and tight rhythms. Finally, he expanded his roster, bringing in yet more thugs to complement Ja, Caddillac Tah, and Black Child. The result seems great in concept and works well on songs like "Down 4 U" and "Ain't It Funny." The non-singles aren't quite as memorable, often weighed down by excessive thuggishness. Still, there's a wealth of music here, everything from girly melodies ("No One Does It Better") to brute swaggering ("We Still Don't Give a F**k"). It's important to keep in mind, however, that Gotti didn't intend this album to play seamlessly but rather more like a sampler. And as a label sampler, The Inc. surely succeeds, giving you a taste of everything, from the girly stuff to the brute swaggering. ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Intro	Irv Gotti, A. Parker	Irv Gotti, Caddillac Tah, Chink Santana	(4:38)
Gangstafied	Irv Gotti, Jeffrey Atkins, A. Parker	Ja Rule, Caddillac Tah, Chink Santana, Ronnie Bumps	(4:40)
Down 4 U (Lyrics)	Larry Troutman, Roger Troutman, Irv Gotti, Jeffrey Atkins, A. Parker, Ashanti Douglas, 7 Aurelius	Ja Rule, Charli Baltimore, Vita, Ashanti	(5:18)
No One Does It Better	Irv Gotti, Ashanti Douglas, 7 Aurelius	Charli Baltimore, Ashanti	(3:50)
It's Murda	G. Fields, Irv Gotti, A. Parker	Caddillac Tah, Chink Santana, D.O.	(5:45)
The Pledge	Irv Gotti, Ashanti Douglas, 7 Aurelius	Caddillac Tah, Ashanti	(5:06)
Ride Wit Us	G. Fields, Irv Gotti, A. Parker	Caddillac Tah, Black Child, D.O., Ronnie Bumps, Jody Mack, Merc, O-1	(4:53)
O.G.	Irv Gotti	Black Child	(2:49)
The Rain	Irv Gotti, Jeffrey Atkins, 7 Aurelius	Ja Rule, Jody Mack, O-1, Joey Mack	(5:11)
Here We Come	Irv Gotti	Irv Gotti, Vita, Ronnie Bumps	(3:53)
We Still Don't Give a F**k	G. Fields, Irv Gotti, A. Parker	Charli Baltimore, Caddillac Tah, Black Child, D.O., Ronnie Bumps, Jody Mack, Merc, Rah, O-1	(4:06)
1 Hearse, 2 Suburbans	Irv Gotti, A. Parker	Black Child, Ronnie Bumps, Merc	(4:35)
Ain't It Funny	Corey Rooney, Javier López	Ja Rule, Jennifer Lopez, Caddillac Tah, J-Lo	(3:53)
Tha Next N****z	G. Fields, Irv Gotti, A. Parker	Eastwood, Crooked I, Crooked, Dave Bing, Caddillac Tah, Black Child, Chink Santana, Ronnie Bumps	(4:40)
DC Joe Skit		Irv Gotti	(2:26)
Hold On	Irv Gotti, A. Parker	Chink Santana	(4:52)

Credits

Tom Coyne (Mastering), John Branca (?), Ronnie Bumps (Performer), Darcell Lawrence (Executive Producer), DL (Producer), Rick Patrick (Art Direction), Dave Bing (Performer), Terry "Murda Mac" Herbert (Assistant Engineer), 7 Aurelius (Producer), Caddillac Tah (Performer), Black Child (Performer), Charli Baltimore (Performer), Jody Mack (Performer), Chink Santana (Producer), Ja Rule (Performer), Brian Springer (Mixing), Irv Gotti (Mixing), Duro (Engineer), Tara Podolsky (A&R), Irv Gotti (Producer), Dawud West (Design), Crooked I (Performer), Chris G.O.T.T.I. (A&R), Irv Gotti (Executive Producer)